Ahhh, the in-between-holidays reprieve -- that fleeting moment just after Thanksgiving where you conquered plates piled high with mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie and just before the next round of holiday treats. Take a moment to refresh with this healthy and delightfully light recipe. It's easy and versatile -- great for sandwiches, as a dip, in wraps, on crackers, or even on its own.

Vegan Mayonnaise
1. To a blender, add oil, dairy-free milk, mustard, agave syrup, and salt; blend until thick and creamy.
2. While blending, stream in lemon juice and vinegar; blend until smooth.
Keeps up to one month in refrigerator.

With Apples, Bean Dip, and Carrot Cake (ABC), Anne and Freya Dinshah have created a fun and practical cookbook for kids. It comes complete with photos of bright-eyed, enthusiastic children making easy plant-based recipes.

This cookbook will have kids feeling like prize-winning chefs in no time, teaching them how to:
• Make healthy snacks and meals
• Safely use knives, stove, oven, and blender
• Learn easy cleanup techniques
• Earn certificates of accomplishment
• Have fun!

“Kids think of cooking as what parents do. This book can open an exciting new window. Cooking is a fun at-home activity. I really got into it!” - Emily (who explored ABC when she was 10 years old)

Apples, Bean Dip, and Carrot Cake makes a great holiday gift that keeps on giving!

Dr. Michael Greger helps us understand the need for enough, but not too much, iron:

"Because the human body has no mechanism to rid itself of excess iron, we evolved to tightly regulate the absorption of it. If our iron stores are low our intestines boost the absorption of iron, and if our iron stores are topped off our intestines block the absorption of iron to maintain us at the sweet spot.

However, this only works with the primary source of iron in the human diet, the iron found in plant foods... The iron in animal foods can just zip right through our intestinal barrier, even if we already have too much. We just don’t have as much control...

Iron overload may be one of the reasons meat consumption has been tied to breast cancer risk. Iron is a pro-oxidant and can induce oxidative stress and DNA damage... Iron overload favors the production of free radicals, fat oxidation, DNA damage, and may contribute to breast carcinogenesis independently or by potentiating the effects of other carcinogens."

When Nikki Benoit walked onto campus one day last year to hand out informational booklets from Vegan Outreach, she had no idea how her seeds of compassion would grow. What started as a typical day of outreach took an abrupt turn when campus security demanded she leave. She was forcibly escorted off campus and arrested for trespassing outside the designated "free speech zone."

The unfounded charges were eventually dropped and countless advocates for animals and for free speech were inspired to do more to spread the message. But the story doesn't end there.

Over a year later, Nikki returned to the same campus to continue leafleting. She was pleasantly surprised: "It was my first time back (on that campus) since being arrested there. I was surprised that one of the officers involved recognized me immediately. He excitedly told me that he quit eating meat since arresting me! He was ecstatic to get a Guide to Cruelty-Free Eating and thanked me profusely for doing outreach!"

Order booklets for outreach at VeganOutreach.org. Plant seeds of compassion and watch them grow!

Watch the video of Nikki famously asking Barack Obama about the
importance of the U.S. leading the way in promoting plant-based foods.

Thanks for reading this week's issue of Meatout Mondays! Share the veggie love with your friends and family... forward this e-mail or sign them up at www.MeatoutMondays.org!